CHADD UNVEILS FIRST ONLINE LIBRARY ON AD/HD
User-Friendly Resource Increases Public Access to the Science of AD/HD

LANDOVER, MD. -- Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD) has unveiled the first and only online library dedicated to research and science-based resources and materials on AD/HD.

The online library (http://www.help4adhd.org/library.cfm) is a project of the National Resource Center on AD/HD (NRC), a collaboration between the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and CHADD, the
nation's leading advocacy organization serving families and individuals affected by AD/HD.

"Now more than ever, people need help sorting through the overwhelming amount of information available on AD/HD," said CHADD National President Mary Durheim. "The NRC's online library allows CHADD to make accurate, science-based information about AD/HD more accessible to parents, educators, clinicians, government officials and individuals who often are left without a reliable source of information about the condition."

Users can browse or search the library with ease using a variety of search methods. The online library includes books for parents and teachers, resources for adults with AD/HD, and reference books and scientific articles for health and education professionals and researchers. Summaries of all resources are provided, and full text
articles are available on the most relevant topics in the diagnosis of AD/HD, treatment options, school challenges and guidelines, and parenting tips. The library also offers full-text articles from "Attention Research Update," a well-respected electronic newsletter written by David Rabiner, Ph.D., a Senior Research Scholar in the Center
for Child and Family Policy at Duke University. (Information about "Attention Research Update" is available at http://www.helpforadd.com.)

"We are pleased to be working with the National Resource Center on AD/HD and CHADD to help bring information on AD/HD to all those who need it," said Edward Brann, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Division of Human Development and Disability at the CDC's National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, which directly funds the NRC and other prominent disability resource centers. "We look forward to working with the NRC to help grow this valuable resource in coming years."

The new online library is part of the NRC's mission to improve the health and quality of life of individuals with AD/HD and their families by expanding their knowledge and understanding of issues related to AD/HD and raising public awareness about AD/HD through outreach and the dissemination of information.

BACKGROUND

The National Resource Center on AD/HD is a proactive response to the CDC's 1999 Public Health Perspective Conference, which called for the development of:

1. a resource for both professionals and the public regarding what is known about the epidemiology of AD/HD, and
2. an avenue for the dissemination of accurate and valid information and materials related to the diagnosis of AD/HD and the availability of
   evidence-based interventions.

According to the May 2002 CDC Vital and Health Statistics report, there are 1.623 million children with AD/HD (approximately 7 percent), ages 6-11.

In August 2002, CDC awarded CHADD $750,000 to establish and operate a national clearinghouse to disseminate science-based information on AD/HD. The Center is now fully staffed with healthcare experts, including specially trained information specialists, who respond to public inquiries in English and Spanish via the National Resource
Center (NRC) website, http://www.help4adhd.org, and the toll-free number (800-233-4050).

Since its inception, CHADD has worked to improve the lives of people affected by AD/HD through collaborative leadership, advocacy, research, education and support: CHADD CARES. The NRC allows CHADD to maintain its role as a family support membership organization, while simultaneously creating new initiatives and free information clearinghouse services that benefit families, providers, policy-makers, educators, researchers and the general public.

For additional information about AD/HD or CHADD, please contact the National Resource Center at 800-233-4050, or visit the CHADD website at www.chadd.org.

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[via News from CHADD, Volume 4, Number 2, February 6, 2004]